McCarthy, Kevin 1914-

views updated

McCARTHY, Kevin 1914-


PERSONAL: Born February 14 (some sources say February 15), 1914, in Seattle, WA; son of Roy Winfield and Martha Therese (Preston) McCarthy; brother of Mary McCarthy (a writer); married Augusta Dabney (an actress), 1941 (divorced, 1961); married Kate Crane, 1979; children: (first marriage) three; (second marriage) Tess, Patrick. Education: Attended Georgetown University and University of Minnesota. Politics: Democrat.


ADDRESSES: Agent—Innovative Artists Talent, 1999 Avenue of the Stars, Los Angeles, CA 90067-6022. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Actor. Actor in films, including (as Ronnie Meade) Winged Victory, 1944; (as Biff Loman) Death of a Salesman, Columbia, 1951; (as Steve Norris) Drive a Crooked Road, Columbia, 1954; (as Andre Rivage) Gambler from Natchez, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1954; (as Tom Bannerman) Stranger on Horseback, United Artists, 1955; (as Jim R. Scott) An Annapolis Story (also known as The Blue and the Gold), Allied Artists, 1955; (as Stan Grayson) Nightmare, United Artists, 1956; (as Dr. Miles J. Binnell) Invasion of the Body Snatchers (also known as Sleep No More), Allied Artists, 1956; (as Harry Jordan) Diamond Safari, 1958; (as Raymond Taber) The Misfits, 1961; (as Blanchard) Forty Pounds of Trouble, Universal, 1962; (as General "Happy Jack" Kirby) A Gathering of Eagles, Universal, 1963; (as Dr. John Garrett) The Prize, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), 1963; (as Allen McCleod) An Affair of the Skin (also known as Love as a Disorder), Zenith, 1964; (as Dick Jensen) The Best Man (also known as Gore Vidal's The Best Man), Warner Bros., 1964; (as Sylvester Josephson) Mirage, Universal, 1965; (as Otto Habershaw) A Big Hand for the Little Lady (also known as Big Deal at Dodge City), Warner Bros., 1966; (as Vershinin) The Three Sisters, 1966; (as Curtis O'Keefe) Hotel, Warner Bros., 1967; (as Colonel Wilson) The Hell with Heroes, Universal, 1968; (as Leslie Whitlock) If He Hollers, Let Him Go! (also known as Dead Right and Night Hunt), Paramount, 1968; (as Drake) Ace High (also known as Four Gunmen of Ave Maria, Revenge at El Paso, and Revenge in El Paso), Paramount, 1969; (as Burt Henry) Kansas City Bomber, MGM, 1972; (as Washington doctor) Richard, 1972; Between Time and Timbuktu, 1972; (as Malcolm Grant) Alien Thunder (also known as Dan Candy's Law), 1974; (as Ed McLean) El clan de los inmorales (also known as Mission: To Kill and Order to Kill), 1975; (as Major John Burke) Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson, United Artists, 1976; (as running man) Invasion of the Body Snatchers (remake), United Artists, 1978; (as Dr. Robert Hoak) Piranha, 1978; (as Calvin Donnelly) Hero at Large, United Artists, 1980; (as Mickey Bellinger) Those Lips, Those Eyes, United Artists, 1980; (as Fred Francis) The Howling, 1981; (as Uncle Walt) "It's a Good Life," Twilight Zone: The Movie, 1983; (as Mr. Chrystal) My Tutor, 1983; (as himself) Montgomery Clift, 1983; (as Sergie) Dark Tower, Spectrafilm, 1987; (as Victor Scrimshaw) Innerspace, 1987; (as Colonel Tim Shaw) Hostage, 1987; (as R. J. Fletcher) UHF (also known as The Vidiot from UHF), 1989; (as Judge Reinholte) Fast Food, 1989; (as Vincent Tuttle) The Sleeping Car, 1990; (as William Reed) Love or Money, 1990; (as William Simmons) Eve of Destruction, 1991; (as General Geller) Final Approach, 1991; (as Professor Ragnar) Ghoulies 3: Ghoulies Go to College, 1991; (as Terry Corrigan) The Distinguished Gentleman, 1992; (as general) Matinee, 1993; (as Bartlett) Greedy, 1994; (as Phil Prentiss) Just Cause, 1995; (as Reed Tyler) Steal Big, Steal Little, 1995; (as fire department rescuer) Mommy, 1995; (as R. J. Fletcher) "UHF," "Weird Al" Yankovic: The Videos, 1996; (as Grandpa Addams) Addams Family Reunion, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1998; (as Zondervan) The Legend of Razorback, 2002; and Looney Tunes: Back in Action, 2003.

Actor in television series, including (as Philip Hastings) The Survivors (also known as Harold Robbins' The Survivors), American Broadcasting Companies (ABC), 1970; (as Claude Weldon) Flamingo Road, National Broadcasting Company (NBC), 1981-82; (as Zack Cartwright) Amanda's, ABC, 1983; (as George Hayward) Bay City Blues, 1983; (as Lucas Carter) The Colbys (also known as Dynasty II: The Colbys), 1986-87; and (as Mr. Culbertson) Charlie Hoover, Fox, 1991. Actor in made-for-television movies, including (as Clifford Coswell) U.M.C. (also known as Operation Heartbeat), Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), 1969; (as Mark Reynolds) A Great American Tragedy, ABC, 1972; (as District Attorney Kamenski) Exo-Man, 1977; (as Tom Atherton) Mary Jane Harper Cried Last Night, 1977; (as Dr. Ken Paige) Portrait of an Escort, 1980; (as Dr. Jones) Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story, 1982; (as Ward Hawley) The Making of a Male Model, ABC, 1983; (as Mr. Thompson) Invitation to Hell, 1984; (as Wes Vandergelder) The Ratings Game (also known as The Mogul), 1984; (as Reichman) Deadly Intentions, ABC, 1985; (as Judge Crandall) The Midnight Hour (also known as In the Midnight Hour), ABC, 1985; (as Jonathan Hire) A Masterpiece of Murder, NBC, 1986; (as Joseph P. Kennedy) LBJ: The Early Years, NBC, 1987; (as Harland Everett) The Long Journey Home, ABC, 1987; (as the governor) Once upon a Texas Train (also known as Texas Guns), CBS, 1988; (as Senator Wilson) The Rose and the Jackal, Turner Network Television (TNT), 1990; (as Waverly Blake) Dead on the Money, TNT, 1991; (as Dr. Nelson Congemi) Duplicates, USA Network, 1992; (as Miles) Roadracers (also known as Rebel Highway), Showtime, 1994; (as Judge Pollan) Judicial Consent (also known as My Love, Your Honor), Home Box Office (HBO), 1994; (as George Richards) The Sister-in-Law, Wilshire Court Productions, 1995; (as chief of staff) The Second Civil War, HBO, 1997; and (as Deep Throat; uncredited) Elvis Meets Nixon, 1997. Actor in television miniseries, including (as Franklyn Hutton) Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story, NBC, 1987; (as Harold Christie) Passion and Paradise, ABC, 1989; and (as Sol Siegel) Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story, NBC, 1995. Played Claude Weldon in Flamingo Road (pilot), NBC, 1980.

Appeared in televised stage productions, including (as Romeo) "Romeo and Juliet," Cameo Theatre, NBC, 1949; "I Can't Breathe," Actors' Studio, 1949; "Romeo and Juliet," The Philco Television Playhouse, 1949; "The Power Devil," The Philco Television Playhouse, 1950; "Jane Eyre," Westinghouse Studio One Summer Theatre, CBS, 1952; "Double Jeopardy," The Philco Television Playhouse, 1953; "Highway," The United States Steel Hour, ABC, 1954; "Spring Reunion," Goodyear Television Playhouse, NBC, 1954; "The Personal Touch," Goodyear Television Playhouse, NBC, 1954; "You Need Me," Star Tonight, 1955; and "Two Black Kings," The United States Steel Hour, ABC, 1962.

Also appeared in television specials, including (as Dr. Frank Simmons) Columbo: Requiem for a Falling Star, 1973; (as Mr. Hart) June Moon, 1974; (as Trigorin) The Seagull, 1975; (as Edison) Home, ABC, 1987; (as the general) Channel 99, NBC, 1988; (as Leo) Second Start, ABC, 1988; Montgomery Clift: His Place in the Sun, Cinemax, 1989; (as presenter) The Seventh Annual Genesis Awards, 1993; (as himself) Marlon Brando: The Wild One, BBC, 1996; Montgomery Clift:The Hidden Star, Arts and Entertainment (A&E), 1998; and Ray Walston: No Antennae, Please, A & E, 1999. Guest star on numerous television shows, including Hawaii Five-0; The F.B.I.; Mission: Impossible; Murder, She Wrote; and The District.


Actor in stage productions, including (as Jasp and Phil) Abe Lincoln in Illinois, Plymouth Theatre, New York, NY, 1938; (as Dan Crawford) Brother Rat, Wharburton Square Playhouse, Yonkers, NY, 1938; (as Richard Banning) Flight to the West, Guild Theatre, New York, NY, 1940; (as Mexican Mural) Chanin Building, Penthouse Theatre, New York, NY, 1942; (as Ronny Meade) Winged Victory, 44th Street Theatre, New York, NY, 1943; (as Maurice) Truckline Café, Belasco Theatre, New York, NY, 1946; (as Dunois) Joan of Lorraine, Alvin Theatre, New York, NY, 1946; (as Morgan Decker) The Survivors, Playhouse Theatre, New York, NY, 1948; (as Kurt Heger) Bravo!, Lyceum Theatre, New York, NY, 1948; (as Biff Loman) Death of a Salesman, Phoenix Theatre, London, England, 1949; (as Matt Burke) Anna Christie, City Center Theatre, New York, NY, 1952; (as Berowne) Love's Labour's Lost, City Center Theatre, 1953; (as Freddie Page) The Deep Blue Sea, Morosco Theatre, New York, NY, 1953; (as Boris Trigorin) The Seagull, Phoenix Theatre, New York, NY, 1954; (as Ayamonn Breydon) Red Roses for Me, Booth Theatre, New York, NY, 1955; (as Richard Morrow) The Day the Money Stopped, Belasco Theatre, 1958; (as Jerry Ryan) Two for the Seesaw, Booth Theatre, 1959; (as Rupert Forster) Marching Song, Gate Theatre, New York, NY, 1959; (as Van Ackerman) Advise and Consent, Cort Theatre, New York, NY, 1960; (as Captain Dodd) Something about a Soldier, Ambassador Theatre, New York, NY, 1962; Brecht on Brecht, Theatre de Lys, New York, NY, 1962, then Theatre at University of California, Los Angeles, 1963; (as Reverend Shannon) Night of the Iguana, Festival Theatre, Louisville, KY, 1964; (as Vershinin) The Three Sisters, Morosco Theatre, 1964; (as Homer) A Warm Body, Cort Theatre, 1967; (as Julian) Cactus Flower, Royale Theatre, New York, NY, 1967; (as Harold Ryan) Happy Birthday, Wanda June, Theatre de Lys, then Edison Theatre, 1970; (as Dan) The Children, New York Shakespeare Festival, The Other Stage, New York, NY, 1972; (as Trigorin) The Seagull, Williamstown Festival Theatre, Williamstown, MA, 1974; (as Gerte) The Rapists, New Dramatists Theatre, New York, NY, 1974; (as Harry Harrison) Harry Outside, Circle Repertory Theatre, New York, NY, 1975; (multiple roles) Poor Murderer, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York, NY, 1976; The Lion in Winter, summer stock production, 1976; Equus, summer stock production, 1978; (as George Butler) Alone Together, Music Box Theatre, New York, NY, 1984; and (as President Harry S. Truman) Give 'em Hell, Harry, Pasadena Playhouse, Pasadena, CA, 1987. Actor in touring productions, including (as Ronny Meade) Winged Victory, U.S. cities, 1944; (as Jerry Ryan) Two for the Seesaw, U.S. cities, 1960-1965; and (as Freddie Page) The Deep Blue Sea.

Provided the voice of Gordon Fitzpatrick for video game The Pandora Directive, 1996.


WRITINGS:


(Editor, with Ed Gorman) "They're Here . . .": Invasion of the Body Snatchers: A Tribute, Berkley Boulevard (New York, NY), 1999.


SIDELIGHTS: Although Kevin McCarthy has acted on stage and screen for over sixty years, in the popular imagination his career is still defined by one of his first roles, that of Dr. Miles J. Binnell in the 1956 cult classic alien movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The movie, which has since spawned two remakes, featured aliens taking over a small town by sucking the free will and humanity out of the town's inhabitants, turning them into perfectly conformist automatons. In 1999, McCarthy teamed up with Ed Gorman to edit "They're Here . . .": Invasion of the Body Snatchers: A Tribute. This "festive" book, as Ray Olson described it in Booklist, includes such latter-day horror masters as Stephen King and Dean Koontz reminiscing about being inspired by the film as children, as well as interviews with the cast and crew of the film and essays about the book upon which the film was based. "The book's acme is the long conversation between [McCarthy] and horror-movie maven John McCarty," author of The Offıcial Splatter Movie Guide, Olson concluded.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:


books


Chaneles, Sol, and Albert Wolsky, The Movie Makers, Derbibooks (Secaucus, NJ), 1974.

Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television, Volume 35, Gale (Detroit, MI), 2001.

Halliwell, Leslie, Halliwell's Filmgoer's Companion, ninth edition, Charles Scribner's Sons (New York, NY), 1988.

Katz, Ephraim, The Film Encyclopedia, Crowell (New York, NY), 1979.

Pickard, Roy, The Oscar Stars from A-Z, Headline (London, England), 1996.


periodicals


Booklist, January 1, 1999, Ray Olsen, review of "They're Here . . .": Invasion of the Body Snatchers: A Tribute, p. 817.

Cosmopolitan, September, 1987, Guy Flatley, review of Innerspace, p. 52.

Entertainment Weekly, July 15, 1994, Glenn Kenny, review of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, p. 73.

Film Quarterly, fall, 1981, Bruce Kawin, review of The Howling, pp. 25-31.

Los Angeles Times, March 3, 2000, Jana J. Monji, review of Knights of the Round Table, pp. F46.

New Leader, February 9, 1981, Marvin Kitman, review of Flamingo Road, p. 22.

Newsweek, January 12, 1981, Harry F. Waters, review of Flamingo Road, p. 58.

New York, November 5, 1984, John Simon, review of Alone Together, pp. 74-75; February 2, 1987, John Leonard, review of LBJ: The Early Years, p. 66; March 23, 1992, John Leonard, review of Duplicates, pp. 62-63.

New Yorker, May 4, 1981, Pauline Kael, review of TheHowling, pp. 164-167; July 25, 1983, Pauline Kael, review of Twilight Zone: The Movie, pp. 31-33; October 29, 1984, Brendan Gill, review of Alone Together, pp. 127-128.

New York Times, January 13, 1981, Janet Maslin, review of Flamingo Road, p. 16, C14; February 1, 1981, John J. O'Connor, review of Flamingo Road, p. D29; October 22, 1984, Frank Rich, review of Alone Together, pp. 16, C15; February 1, 1987, John Corry, review of LBJ: The Early Years, p. H33; July 22, 1989, Stephen Holden, review of UHF, pp. 12, 15.

People, June 17, 1991, David Hiltbrand, review of Dead on the Money, p. 11; November 9, 1992, Paula Chin, review of Give 'Em Hell Harry!, pp. 59-60; July 17, 1995, David Hiltbrand, review of The Sister-in-Law, pp. 13-14.

Science-Fiction Studies, March, 2000, Andrew Gordon, review of "They're Here . . . ," pp. 162-166.

TV Guide, April 3, 1982, Ellen Torgerson Shaw, "Did Adhesive Tape Make Him an Actor?" pp. 20-23.

Variety, January 21, 1981, review of Flamingo Road, pp. 80-81; January 28, 1981, review of The Howling, p. 18; March 9, 1983, review of My Tutor, pp. 18-19; August 22, 1984, review of Alone Together, p. 126; October 24, 1984, review of Alone Together, p. 444; November 4, 1987, review of Hostage, p. 19; November 25, 1987, review of Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story, p. 198; August 24, 1988, review of Channel 99, p. 97; May 3, 1989, review of Fast Food, p. 17; May 3, 1989, review of Fast Food, p. 17; July 19, 1989, review of UHF, p. 20; January 17, 1990, review of Love or Money, p. 29; March 28, 1990, review of The Sleeping Car, p. 23; March 23, 1992, Tony Scott, review of Duplicates, p. 35.


online


Kevin McCarthy Home Page,http://www.bodysnatchers.com (April 23, 2003).*

About this article

McCarthy, Kevin 1914-

Updated About encyclopedia.com content Print Article